(a) Technical Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to a pedal system for a vehicle, and more particularly, to a pedal effort generation device for a vehicle capable of implementing a best pedal effort.
(b) Description of the Related Art
Generally, vehicles are provided with various types of pedals such as a brake pedal, an accelerator pedal, and a clutch pedal. The pedals are operated by a driver while the vehicle is running to change a running condition of the vehicle. Therefore, the pedal is directly linked with safety of the driver or of pedestrians.
The pedals are operated by the driver's foot, such that the driver may feel pedal efforts of various amounts depending on the force with which the driver steps on the pedal. Here, the pedal effort refers to a reaction force that is provided to the driver's foot when the driver steps on the pedal. The amount of the pedal effort applied to the driver's foot, that is, the force for stepping on the pedal, changes according to a position of the pedal as the driver steps on the pedal. The pedal effort varies depending on the kind of pedal, but is determined based on the pedal's weight and length, a shape of a pedal arm, a natural elastic property value of a spring elastically supporting the pedal, and the like. As an example, if a driver steps on the pedal slowly, the driver's foot experiences a gradually increasing pedal effort as the pedal rotates.
Recently, devices for generating a brake pedal effort have been applied to hybrid vehicles and vehicles utilizing an electronic clutch (E-clutch). In conventional vehicles, a clutch pedal is operated to generate a hydraulic pressure. However, since the electronic clutch as described above is operated by operating an actuator using an electronic signal, a pedal effort generation device capable of providing a feeling of operating the pedal to the driver is necessary.
Furthermore, in recent years, there has been a demand for the ability to change a pedal effort profile to freely adjust a pedal effort according to the driver's taste, preference, etc. However, since the structure of the pedal device needs to be changed to change the pedal effort profile, such an installation can be costly.
Conventionally, an active pedal device capable of controlling a pedal effort profile or the amount of pedal effort provided when a driver steps on a pedal. However, since the conventional active pedal devices use expensive components, manufacturing costs are often high, and marketability may deteriorate as the pedal effort profile deteriorates over time.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of understanding of the background of the disclosure, and therefore, it may contain information that does not form the related art.